As far as I can tell, there isn't really an official national dish for each nation of the world. There are, however, many unofficial dishes that are associated with various countries. There are many such lists, I'll be working off the one at Wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_dish
And what will I be doing? Cooking them, hopefully. Every week or two, I'll pick a random country from the wiki list and do my best to cook the dish, document its preparation, provide adequate photography and maybe throw in a little trivia about the dish and its country of origin.
Some countries in the above list are very specific about what their dish is. Greece, for example, lists Moussaka. No problems there. India, however: rice and curry? That's about 2000 different possibilities right there. Italy: pasta. Please! In those cases I'll try to find something that represents the spirit of the dish and offers me an interesting cooking experience.
I'm not a professional cook. And I'm basically lost without a recipe (culinary improvisation fortitude has thus far eluded me). But I like doing it, and I love learning about different cultures. Have fun with me on the ride.
And what will I be doing? Cooking them, hopefully. Every week or two, I'll pick a random country from the wiki list and do my best to cook the dish, document its preparation, provide adequate photography and maybe throw in a little trivia about the dish and its country of origin.
Some countries in the above list are very specific about what their dish is. Greece, for example, lists Moussaka. No problems there. India, however: rice and curry? That's about 2000 different possibilities right there. Italy: pasta. Please! In those cases I'll try to find something that represents the spirit of the dish and offers me an interesting cooking experience.
I'm not a professional cook. And I'm basically lost without a recipe (culinary improvisation fortitude has thus far eluded me). But I like doing it, and I love learning about different cultures. Have fun with me on the ride.
